Monthly Archives: December 2024

Professionalism and Adab

Posted in All in a days work by

Professionalism

Professionalism encompasses a set of behaviours, attitudes, and values expected in a professional environment. It involves a commitment to excellence, ethical practices, accountability, and respect for others. Professionals demonstrate integrity, reliability, and a strong work ethic, which are vital for fostering trust with colleagues, clients, and stakeholders. Moreover, professionalism often involves adhering to industry standards and continuously improving one’s skills and knowledge.

The Concept of ‘Adab’

In many cultures, particularly within the Islamic tradition, the term ‘adab’ refers to a code of conduct and etiquette that embodies respect, politeness, and good manners. It extends beyond mere social niceties and encompasses ethical behaviour and moral responsibility. ‘Adab’ encourages individuals to act with dignity, show kindness, and maintain a sense of decorum in their interactions with others.

The Intersection of Professionalism and ‘Adab’

The principles of professionalism and ‘adab’ intersect significantly, as both emphasise respect and ethical behaviour:

  1. Respect for Others: Both concepts advocate for treating others with respect. In a professional setting, this means valuing colleagues’ opinions, being considerate of their time, and fostering a collaborative environment.
  2. Integrity and Accountability: Professionalism calls for honesty and accountability, which aligns with the ethical underpinnings of ‘adab’. Upholding one’s commitments and being transparent in actions are essential in both realms.
  3. Continuous Improvement: Professionalism advocates ongoing development and professional growth. ‘Adab’ also encourages individuals to seek knowledge and refine their skills, recognizing that personal development enhances one’s conduct.
  4. Positive Communication: Clear and respectful communication is pivotal in both professionalism and ‘adab’. This involves active listening and responding thoughtfully, contributing to a constructive atmosphere.

Recently I got to witness how professionalism was literally thrown out of the window.

  • A calculative job transfer without the knowledge of the superior at the workplace. To pull that off, you would need high-ranking connections. While it is stealthy, I do not consider it a genius move. Instead, as a future employer, I would be very careful because these are people who will abandon ship when the going gets tough. I feel that despite the troubles you had at the workplace, you should always leave with dignity. It’s fine to trample over a work colleague, leaving behind tasks that are not passover and all, but the nerve to not inform your superior is something I cannot brain. Quitting gives off a different vibe. People would actually sympathise with you but to apply for a transfer on a different platform without the knowledge of others? It brings on a different feeling altogether.
  • Playing down on the issue by mouthing other people’s transfers who applied it through appropriate channels.
  • Dragging down other colleagues who knew about the transfer. Making them look like an accomplice to a career suicide. Now, it is hard to not see them in a positive light.
  • Thanks to this employment move, we are expecting the boss to be pissed off for the whole year.

My Final Year Project (FYP) for Psychology is complete

Posted in Adult Learning, Ponderings & Personal Development by

When I first started, it was difficult to envision the end. Eventually, I did. All I had to do was take it one step at a time, holding the hand of my supervisor.

I studied motivation among the staff at my clinic. The biggest hurdle when conducting any study at a KKM facility is that I need to get approval from the Medical Research and Ethics Committee (MREC). That means having to set up a National Medical Research Register (NMRR) account and doing another set of study protocols based on what I have already written for Chapters 1 to 3 for my Open University Malaysia (OUM) subject. Once the study protocol was written and the relevant early permission was granted from my superior at the workplace and the district health office, I had to submit these documents to NMRR. I had to revise my protocol and my consent forms twice. It was disheartening at first because I was running out of time. I initially wanted to complete my FYP in 2 semesters, but I do not have control over the technical aspects of other things. This became my second hurdle.

I learned to accept that some things are just out of our control. The things I could control at the time were my reading and understanding of the topic through literature reviews. I also tried my best to perfect my chapters. I used a thesaurus a lot because the words I used were, at times, less academic. Even then, everything just comes together. The ethical approval came just in time when I wanted to start my data collection.

The data collection period was exhausting. I had to transcribe on my own. I had to squeeze in the tasks of analysing, transcribing, and reading the data between the times of the early morning, after work, and over the weekend. Writing up the report was an equally exhausting stage as I tried to make sense of what my results were. It got to the point when my sympathetic responses went into overdrive mode. However, the euphoria of being absorbed in the process and fully understanding what I wanted to achieve kept me going. There were certainly some things I initially overlooked, which just underscores how vital it is to have an engaged SV. I’ve had my sights set on this SV ever since my semester studying social psychology. She was one of the first people I considered when we were selecting our SVs, and it turned out to be an excellent decision. You can genuinely feel the positive energy of an exceptional SV radiating from her. A hallmark of a great SV is her ability to guide me through complex topics, even outside her field, ensuring that external readers can easily grasp the concepts.

Towards the deadline, there was a lot of ping-pong going on with our emails but we persevered. I felt a huge relief when I submitted my report to OUM. On the day itself.

Is this the end of my FYP? Technically yes, but remember the NMRR and MREC I mentioned earlier. Now I have to submit a report to them. I hope I can use my OUM report instead of re-doing it with a different format. I will check on it soon.

Celebrating Ee’s Birthday at IOI Mall

Posted in Parenting, Family and Relationships by

We celebrated Ee’s birthday recently during his weekend outing at IOI Mall Putrajaya. He really wanted to eat Nandos because of the well-seasoned chicken and the bottomless yoghurt. Haneem shared the quarter chicken meal with me because she was in a bad mood. But I did order extra Yuzu chicken wings on the side. We also shared a glass of bottomless soft drinks.

Before that birthday lunch, we had pastries at La Boheme Cafe.

I asked Ee if he wanted anything else for his birthday. A new T-shirt or underwear, or something. He said he didn’t need any.

He did ask me to bring the Mahathir biography book and the Lat comic for his group project. They are doing a skit on “Idols”. I suggested a more contemporary and young figure like Khairul Aming but it seems that the members are keen to proceed with Tun M.

Ee has always been a quiet boy. Lately, I can see that he is also growing smarter ( they should, right?). He can solve his problems better nowadays. I think Mr Husband was surprised that he did not bring his laundry basket during his latest outing. He said he was able to wash them all. Even I was surprised. Of course, this is probably one of those rare occurrences but it is still good to know that he knows how to manage his time. He is also doing the workbooks that my husband bought. It is something to keep his mind going and prepared for SPM (in 4 years). There is still doubt that KPPN will be able to address this particular concern raised by the parents since they are quite hooked up in ‘theories’ and ‘ideas’ of genius upbringing. I mean, it is fine if you have a unique pathway for the students but if you are still going to put them in the same pool at the university level, there is nothing special about KPPN after all.

It’s like you made the effort to send your child to Genius Aulad for a headstart and yet choose to send the child to mainstream schooling. Might as well keep up the momentum to private school or send the child to a less expensive kindergarten in the first place.

HIV Programme – a rotten tomato rating to myself

Posted in All in a days work, Ponderings & Personal Development by

I wanted to host my HIV programme in a different format this year. Instead of another aerobics session with a public talk, I made it into an organised CME session. The turnout was bad as I overlooked certain things that could have made a difference. Less than 10 people attended the talk.

  • NO hype. There was no hype built around the programme. Hence, people were not excited to attend the session and just cited ‘being busy’ or ‘patient ramai’ as an excuse. I could do better by explaining what World AIDS Day is and emphasising the importance of healthcare worker’s support.
  • Existing HCWs do not see their role in HIV care. To them, it is a distant thing managed purely by myself, Dr Minci and members of my team. While it is true that we coordinate patient’s care, other healthcare professionals are equally important in managing these cases.
  • Team spirit. It is noticeably lacking as compared to my NCD team. Perhaps it is predominantly male making them less enthusiastic about the frills of any celebration.

Anyway, InsyaAllah I can do better in 2025. I will be having a new co-champion. I hope that everything goes well. Amin.